


Tonight Is Bottoms Up

by Telesilla



Series: Afterparty [1]
Category: Baseball RPF, Sports RPF
Genre: Angst, Baseball, Blow Jobs, Body Shots, Celebrations, Double Penetration, Drinking, Group Sex, M/M, Marijuana, Naked Cuddling, Orgy, San Francisco Giants, the giants win the pennant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-26
Updated: 2014-10-26
Packaged: 2018-02-22 18:33:29
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,491
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2517665
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Telesilla/pseuds/Telesilla
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which the Giants win the pennant, Joe Panik learns how they party in The Show, and there are unusual undercurrents.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tonight Is Bottoms Up

October 16/17, 2014

 

"So," a voice says, right out of nowhere. Joe blinks and turns to see Posey looking at him and maybe he's drunker than he realized because he thought he just saw Posey leave with his wife and kids. 

"So?" he says. 

"I kind of get the impression that you like guys."

Joe should say something, anything, but all he can do is stare at Posey, his mouth half open like an idiot. When he finally does get something out, he sounds fucking pathetic. "I...um...."

Posey just smiles. "Relax. I'm not gonna say anything or beat you up or whatever you're worried about." He runs a hand through his hair and how the hell does he look like he just stepped out of the shower when he's spent the last hour getting sprayed with champagne and talking to reporters? Or both, even.

"But you do, right?"

"Um...yeah," Joe says. "I mean, I have a girlfriend but...."

"Yeah," Posey says. "And I have a wife and kids."

And now Joe knows this has to be an alcohol fueled fantasy because if it isn't Buster fucking Posey just came out to him. "Are you saying...."

"Actually, I'm inviting you to a party where you might see, or even do, things that straight people don't do. Oh, and there'll be some weed too, so if that's a problem you might want to say no."

"A party? Like...right now?"

Posey just laughs. "C'mon rook, time to learn how big leaguers party."

Which is how Joe finds himself walking very nervously across the lobby of a very expensive looking apartment building. He's never been to anyone's place, not any of the veterans at least. Duff and Susac are all in rent by the month apartments just like he is, but they don't exactly count. He can't help wondering whose place they're going to.

"Okay," Posey says, once the elevator doors close behind them. "Here's how it works. You don't ask about anyone's wife or girlfriend; some of them know what goes on and some of them don't. How the guys deal with it is their business. Just like what you tell your girlfriend is none of our business."

When Posey doesn't say anything, Joe nods. "Okay," he says. Maybe it's the champagne and the beer he's already had, or maybe it's winning the fucking pennant, or maybe it's just sheer curiosity, but he tells himself he'll worry about what to say to Brittany later. After the party. At least they're not married.

"You don't talk about this in the clubhouse. Ever. And you don't say anything to your rookie buddies until we decide they're in."

Joe nods again. 

"You look like...well, I was gonna say a deer in the headlights, which is true, but I'm pretty sure I looked the same way back in 2010." Posey grins at him. "There's gonna be some fucking and there's gonna be some dope smoking and a lot of drinking. There won't be any harder drugs and there won't be any hookers or gamer babes. You get what I mean?" When Joe nods for a third time, Posey looks at him for a long moment before speaking again. "In? Or out?"

Joe takes a deep breath. In, he thinks. Or out? When he finally speaks, he's surprised at how steady his voice is. "I'm in."

"I'd say we're going down the rabbit hole," Posey says as he digs into his pockets. He pulls out a keyring and then pushes a key into a lock above the floor numbers. "But we're going up."

Before Joe can respond, Posey turns and looks at him. "Two more things. One: first names or nicknames. Two...." He moves in closer until he's got Joe pressed up against the elevator wall. "Two: no one's gonna push you into doing anything you don't want to do. But if you do want to, how about you do it with me?"

"Yeah," Joe says. "Yes." Like he was going to say anything else, he thinks. This isn't quite a fantasy come true, but only because of the whole party aspect. 

Posey--no, Buster--leans in a little further and kisses Joe good and hard. And maybe it's a good thing Joe's not entirely sober because otherwise, he might just come in his pants. Buster, it turns out, is a very good kisser. When he finally pulls back, Joe's panting hard like he's just run the steps at AT&T. 

Buster just grins at him and unbuttons Joe's shirt so quickly that Joe can only stand there feeling like an idiot as Buster looks him over. "Nice," Buster says before crowding Joe up against the wall again. This time he bends down a little and bites Joe's shoulder hard. Joe's vaguely aware that Buster's biting him below the collar line of his uni, but that doesn't matter as Buster starts sucking up a hickey. 

Behind Posey, the elevator doors open and Joe hears someone say, "Dude, you didn't even wait."

Joe's pretty sure he's going to be surprised by some of the people at this party, but it's not a surprise he sees Morse over Buster's shoulder. Mike, not Morse. That's gonna take some getting used to. 

"Like you would have," Buster says. 

Mike just laughs and wanders down the hall.

The elevator opens right into an entry way and Joe can hear music. It sounds like one of BCraw's chill mixes, which, again, doesn't surprise Joe. 

"Bathrooms and bedrooms down the hall," Buster says once they exit the elevator. "Oh, might as well take that off," he adds, pulling Joe's shirt off. "And your shoes. No shoes in the living room."

"Whose place is this?" Joe asks as he pulls his chucks off.

"Ours," Buster says. "No one actually lives here. Well, not full time. Guys crash here when they don't feel like driving across the Bay." He gestures to the left. "Kitchen's in there and the party...." He grabs Joe's hand and leads him through a big archway. "Is in here."

It's just too much to take in. A bunch of people yell Buster and Joe's names as Buster leads Joe to a big overstuffed loveseat, but Joe doesn't even try to see who's actually here. Buster sits down first and then drags Joe down until Joe's half on his lap. On a small table next to them is an unopened bottle of Jack. "Crack that open for me, wouldya?" Buster says as he pulls off his henley. 

For a second, after he's opened the bottle, Joe looks around for glasses. But no, he thinks, This is not the kind of party where you use glasses. Sure enough, Buster reaches over and takes the bottle out of Joe's hand. He tilts his head back as he drinks and for a moment, Joe doesn't give a damn about the rest of the party; he just wants Buster to kiss him again. Buster just winks at him and hands him the bottle. Jack's not Joe's drink of choice, but he drinks some before handing it back.

Sliding an arm around Joe's waist, Buster pulls him in close. "Relax," he murmurs in Joe's ear. "It's a lot to take in."

That's putting it mildly. One wall of the room is nothing but window, but even the sight of the San Francisco night-time skyline can't distract Joe from what's going on in the room. 

There's a big pile of cushions or beanbag chairs in one corner; it's hard to tell because Pablo, BCraw and Sergio are sprawled on them in a big, giggling heap. The air above them is hazy with smoke and even as Joe watches, Romo takes a big huff off a pipe and then blows a set of pretty impressive smoke rings. "Dude," Crawford says, grabbing at the pipe. "Lemme...." There's more giggling when he coughs. 

"Fuckers...how do you do that?"

"He always asks," Buster says. "Hasn't figured it out yet."

"Do you?" Joe asks, even though he can't even imagine it. Then again an hour ago he wouldn't have been able to imagine Buster at this kind of party. "Smoke, I mean."

"Nah, it just makes me sleepy."

"His eyes get all...." Pablo waves his hand for a minute. "Droopy."

"Wish I'd seen that," Mike says as he comes back into the room. "Down on the floor, baby," he says, looking over to where George is stretched out on a sofa, his head on Javy's lap and his legs draped over Hunter. "Or hey no...Hunter, clear off the table."

Joe watches as Hunter moves things off the huge coffee table in the middle of the room. On the sofa, George is wriggling out of his jeans and damn, no matter how many time Joe sees him naked, it's still almost a shock. Joe's been around good looking, well-built guys since high school, but George is something special, even on a team that includes Buster Posey. 

Mike puts a bottle of tequila, a salt shaker and some lime wedges on the table. "Face down?" he asks the room in general. "Or face up."

"Face down for now," Javy says, slapping George's ass.

As George settles on the coffee table, someone calls out, "Save some of that tequila for me!" 

Joe blinks because he hadn't even noticed Gregor until now, probably because he's sitting on a sofa near the other end of the room. Just as Joe wonders whose head is in Gregor's lap, the person lifts his and and yells, "Me too."

Okay what the fuck, Joe thinks. He last saw Brandon Belt kissing his wife while she held the baby and now Brandon's blowing Gregor? And yes, yes he is, because Gregor's got his hand in Brandon's hair and is pushing him down again. 

"Holy fuck," Joe mutters. When Buster hands him the bottle again, he takes a big gulp without even caring that it's bourbon.

"Gives the best head I've ever had," Buster says in Joe's ear. 

All Joe can think is, _but he doesn't even swear in the clubhouse._

"Jesus fucking Christ, guys," someone yells from the doorway. "Y'all coulda waited."

"Oh look," BCraw says. "The rednecks are here. There goes the IQ level."

"Says the dope smoking hippie," Huddy says as he comes over to sit on the arm of Buster's loveseat. "Share?"

Buster hands over the bottle and Huddy takes a long drink before handing it back. "Hey, rook," he says, grinning at Joe.

"Um...hi," Joe says and then, oh God, is he blushing.

"He's so pretty," Huddy says, which doesn't help Joe's blush at all. "You're not gonna share that too, are ya?" 

"At the moment, no," Buster says. 

"Looks like he's already marked him," Jake says from behind Huddy. "Property of Buster Posey."

"Damn right," Buster says, his arm going tighter around Joe. 

Jake settles on the sofa next to Gregor and pulls a baggie of weed and some papers out of his pocket. "I want him next," he says as he rolls up a joint. 

"You share that with me, I'll share Brandon."

"Deal." Jake says and pulls a lighter out of his pocket.

There's still one empty chair across from Buster; it's clearly reserved for someone, because Huddy is settling on the couch next to Hunter. Just as Joe tries to guess who it's for, Hunter looks over at the doorway. 

"Gentlemen," Hunter says. "The MV fucking P has arrived."

"Didja bring the trophy?" Romo asks.

At the same time, Joe sees Brandon lift his head from Gregor's lap. "Girls are okay?" he asks.

"No," Bum says to Romo before he turns in Brandon's direction. "Yeah. Haylee just got Greyson settled when I dropped Ali off."

So, Joe thinks. Apparently it's okay to talk about the wives sometimes?

"They fuck," Buster says. His mouth is right next to Joe's ear and he's speaking very quietly "Haylee n Ali. And that is information that really does not leave this room, okay?"

"Yeah," Joe whispers. Thank God he doesn't hang out around the wives too much because...damn. He looks over in Brandon's direction again; Brandon's already blowing Jake. It looks like Jake is being a little rough--his hips are moving up and down pretty fast--but Brandon seems to be handling it well.

"You want some?" Buster holds the bottle out toward Bum. 

"Nah, that shit's kid's stuff," Bum says as he sets an unlabeled bottle on the table next to his chair. "Save it for the rook." 

"Oh you fucking hick," Buster says. "Seriously?"

"That's the other reason we stopped at his place," Huddy says. "Oh that's pretty," he adds as Javy licks salt off George's lower back before taking the lime out of Hunter's mouth. 

"We've got a lotta salt," Javy says, handing the bottle of tequila to Mike. 

"Fuck," Jake says as Brandon pulls off and moves back over to Gregor. "This fucker's mouth...fuck."

"Hey, Bum," Sergio says. "Is that really fucking moonshine?"

"Yeah," Bum says. He holds out the bottle as Sergio struggles to get out of the pile of beanbag chairs. 

"Holy shit," Sergio says once he's had a drink. He coughs as he hands the bottle back to Bum. "That shit's like fucking everclear.

"Only with flavor," Bum says. 

"Too much for me...oh hey, guys, wait up."

BCraw and Pablo are still giggling but they've also got their hands down each other pants. Sergio leaves his jeans and a pair of plaid boxers in a heap on the floor before joining them again and damn, for a skinny guy, hes fucking ripped. "Let's get more naked here."

"Here," Bum says, holding the bottle out to Joe. "You look like you need it."

The sip Joe takes is small but he's still left blinking his eyes as the moonshine burns its way down his throat. "Fuck...." he mutters as he tries not to cough.

Buster pulls the bottle out of his hand and Joe twists around to watch him drink it. With a quick glance at Bum, Buster takes a long drink and then hands it back to Bum. "Not bad," he says. His tone of voice--careful and oddly cool--makes Joe wonder if there's something more going on under the surface here, but then Buster's pulling him close again.

"Oh fuck," Joe moans as Buster starts biting his shoulder again. It hurts the way all good hickeys hurt; Joe closes his eyes and tilts his head to make it easier for Buster.

When Buster finally pulls away and Joe opens his eyes, the first thing he sees is Huddy licking salt off George's ass cheek while Mike and Hunter kiss each other. Huddy doesn't seem to care about the lime; he hands the tequila to Javy and puts more salt on George's ass. Across the room Brandon's either finished with Jake or taking a break. It turns out to be a break, after Brandon takes a big hit off the joint, he goes back to blowing Jake. The guys on the beanbags seem to be indulging in a mini circle jerk, but they keep stopping to smoke; Joe gets the feeling that's gonna go on for a while.

"How ya doin'?" Buster's accent is thicker than Joe's used to, but for some reason it just makes Buster seem even hotter. Before Joe can answer, Buster twists his hips a little so Joe's really in his lap. Joe can feel the thick ridge of Buster's dick press against his ass and he squirms just a little to see what Buster will do.

"Well, that answered my question," Buster says with a laugh. "You wanna get naked now? Or you gonna come over all shy? 'Cause I can take you down the hall if you...."

Joe's pretty sure he's being manipulated, but it really isn't necessary. Mike and Hunter are pulling each other's shirts off and it looks like Javy's biting George's ass while Huddy sits in front of the coffee table kissing George. Joe's been to a few parties where people disappear into bedrooms, but this is his first orgy and he's not about to miss it. 

Reaching down, he unzips his jeans. "I'm good here," he says. 

Buster just laughs and Joe can feel him digging around in his pocket. 

It's a little weird to undress like this. Even though half the people in the room are completely naked, there's Bum sitting right across from Joe and Buster watching as Joe pulls his pants and shorts off. Bum's still completely dressed and, once Joe's naked, Bum leans back in his chair and looks Joe over like Joe's the evening's entertainment. Maybe, Joe thinks, he's a voyeur or something.

"Hold these," Buster says. "And slide over for a sec."

'These' turns out to be a handful of lube packets mixed with a couple strips of rubbers. Joe stares down at them for a long moment. It's not like he hadn't guessed, but still, he's only been fucked a couple times and while Duff's got a nice dick, it's not nearly as big as Buster's. Joe shakes his head and laughs a little; like he's gonna say no. 

"Okay, up here...straddle me," Buster says. "No, with your back to me. Yeah, like that, that's good. Now lift up a little and gimme one of those lube things and a rubber."

"Toss the rest over here," Javy says, smacking George's ass. "You okay with that, baby?"

"Same thing we do every night," George says before going back to kissing Huddy.

Huh, Joe thinks. He didn't know they were an actual thing. He can't help wondering if any of the other guys here fool around outside of parties. For that matter, how often do they have these parties? 

Although Joe doesn't want to miss what's going on in the room, he still closes his eyes when he feels Buster's fingers rubbing lube against his hole. Buster doesn't take it easy; he starts with two fingers and pushes them in slow but steady. It should hurt--Joe's used to a lot more prep--but maybe it's that Joe's kinda drunk or maybe it's that he's at an orgy, but it's pretty easy to take it, even when Buster starts spreading his fingers. 

"Fuck," Joe mutters. "Fuck fuck...."

Across the room someone's saying the same thing in Spanish; Joe opens his eyes in time to see Gregor come. It's not like Joe hasn't seen teammates come before, but this is really different. Just as he worries about how he's gonna look these guys in the face, Buster pulls his fingers out. 

"Ready for me?"

"Yeah...." Joe says as Buster grabs his hips hard. Hopefully he's ready, he thinks, because this is gonna happen.

"Jesus," Buster says as he pulls Joe down over his dick. "You sure you ready, boy? 'Cause you're fucking tight."

"I'm...goddam...I'm good," Joe gasps out and again, it's true. Buster feels huge inside him, but it's still fucking great.

"Yeah?" Buster says. "Fuck...."

It seems like it takes forever before Joe's finally settled on Buster's lap. He's still panting and trying to adjust when he feels Buster's teeth on his shoulder again. He yelps in surprise and then opens his eyes to see if anyone noticed him sounding like an idiot again. Yeah, like anyone cares, he tells himself.

The stoners in the corner are still piled all over each other and Hunter and Mike are still kissing, although somewhere along the line, they lost their clothes. And Jesus, Joe thinks, staring at Mike's cock, he thought Buster was big. Gregor's leaning back on the sofa smoking while Jake sits next to him pushing down on Brandon's head and swearing nonstop. Over on the coffee table, Javy's kneeling behind George with his fingers up George's ass while George blows Huddy.

And right across from Joe and Buster, Bum is still watching. When Joe meets his eyes, Bum grins a big slow grin. "Boy looks good," he drawls and raises the bottle in Joe's direction.

"Feels good too," Buster says as he finally raises his head. "C'mon, rook, move those hips and ride my dick."

It's a good thing he's drunk, Joe thinks as he lifts up, otherwise, Buster's words alone would get him close. As it is, he's able to move on Buster's lap, Buster's big hands on his hips setting a slow, easy pace. It's perfect, Joe thinks. This whole thing is perfect. Buster Posey's fucking him; the veterans think he's ready to be part of this private thing and, holy, fuck, he's--they're--going to the fucking World Series. 

Across the room, Jake finally stops swearing; Joe looks up in time to see Brandon sit up and wipe his chin. Bum twists in his chair and calls out, "you done with him?"

"Yeah," Jake says, his voice shaky.

"C'mon over here Brandon," Bum says. 

"You gonna fuck him?" Buster asks. He pushes Joe down on his lap and holds him there. As Joe makes a stupid little disappointed noise Buster adds, "Or use his mouth?"

"Why?" Bum asks. He sounds a little annoyed and again, Joe wonders what's going on.

"Thought if maybe you fucked him, he could blow Joe here."

Brandon's reached them by now; he's kneeling at Bum's feet reaching for Bum's fly. Brandon's already naked and--not for the first time--Joe stares at him. Brandon is a _lot_ of man. When Brandon looks over his shoulder and winks at Joe, Joe feels his face get hot again. God, he wishes he didn't blush so easily.

"You wanna get fucked?" Bum asks as he hands the bottle of moonshine down to Brandon. Brandon takes a good long drink and then another before he hands the bottle back to Bum.

"Better'n the last batch," he says and wow, his voice is rough. He gestures to the scene on the coffee table where Javy's finally fucking George while George still blows Huddy. "Yeah, I'd like something like that."

Buster keeps Joe steady on his lap while Bum finally unbuttons his shirt. He doesn't take it off, though, and somehow that makes him even hotter. Brandon's rolling a condom down over over Bum's dick before grabbing a lube packet and twisting it open. Then, as Joe's stares at him wide-eyed, Brandon drips lube on his fingers and reaches between his legs. 

"Holy fuck," Joe mutters, because there's a lot of sex going on in this room--Hunter's got Mike on the floor and is fucking him hard and fast--but the sight of Brandon Belt slicking himself up is one of the hottest things Joe's ever seen.

"Boy's such a slut," Buster says. He sounds more admiring than mean, though, and Brandon just laughs.

"Damn right," he says.

Apparently he gets ready fast because before long he crosses the short distance to Buster and Joe's couch on his knees. To Joe's surprise, Brandon reaches out and holds Joe's face in his big hands. "You okay with kissing a guy who's been giving head?"

"The head I don't mind," Joe says with a little laugh. Even though he can still feel Buster's dick huge and hard inside him, for a moment it's like he and Brandon are the only guys in the room. "The moonshine, though...." 

Brandon grins that big grin at him and leans forward. As he kisses Joe nice and slow, like he's exploring Joe's mouth and has all night to do it, Joe feels Buster's hands tighten on his hips.

"Okay, move it again," Buster says. Joe's surprised again when Brandon doesn't stop kissing him. Instead, he moves with Joe as Joe lifts up and then goes back down again. 

"Yeah, that's real pretty," Bum says after few moments. "But Brandon, you need to back that big ass up."

Again, Brandon doesn't seem to be offended; he's laughing when he pulls away from Joe's mouth. "It'll be good," he says really softly. 

"It already is," Joe says. 

"Then," Brandon says, louder this time. "It'll be better'n good."

Brandon settles on his hands and knees while Bum kneels behind him. Even if Joe couldn't see Bum move, he'd be able to tell from the look on Brandon's face that Bum had started fucking Brandon. Brandon bites his lip and takes a deep shuddering breath. "Yeah," he says. "Oh fuck yeah, Bum."

"Okay," Buster says in Joe's ear. "It's all about logistics, right? Kneel up a little."

Buster's a logistical genius. All Brandon has to do is lean forward and then....

"Holy fuck!" Joe yelps as Brandon takes him all the way in with one slick motion.

"Told ya so," Buster says as he pushes up into Joe. 

It takes a minute or so, but then Brandon's picked up Buster's rhythm and all Joe can do is hold on. Buster's fucking him right into Brandon's mouth and it's the best sex Joe's ever had, by a fucking mile. A country mile, he thinks with a laugh. "Goddamn," he says. "God-fucking-damn."

Brandon does something...is he laughing around Joe's dick? Whatever it is, it feels fucking awesome. So does Brandon's tongue and the way he seems to know just when to suck hard and God, but Buster's dick is awesome too. He's really giving it to Joe now and it looks like Bum's doing the same to Brandon. 

When Joe looks up, Bum's looking at him as he fucks Brandon, but no....

Bum's looking past Joe right at Buster; Joe's pretty sure Buster's looking back and it's weird. It gets even weirder once Joe realizes they're fucking in sync. Again, he wonders what's going on between them. Before he can think about it too much, Buster speeds up just a little and suddenly his dick is hitting Joe in just the right place and never mind that Joe's drunk, he's gonna come...he's gonna....

"Fuck...goddamn...fuck!" His hips buck up and then, when he feels Brandon swallowing around the head of his dick, it's all over. He yells again and comes harder than he ever has in his life. When he's done, he's left shuddering and shaking in Buster's arms. Buster keeps fucking him and now Brandon's looking up at him. When Joe gives him a weak little smile, Brandon grins at him again.

Bum's still looking at Buster and Buster's fingers are digging into Joe's hips like he's trying to keep it together and not come. After another moment, Brandon rolls his eyes and squirms a little. With a harsh groan Bum closes his eyes and goes still. Almost at the same time, Buster bends down, bites Joe's shoulder and fucks up into him hard before coming.

When Buster leans back, pulling Joe with him, Joe's startled to hear applause and some cat calls. He blinks and looks across the room to see Gregor and Jake clapping their hands. "Now that's some fucking porn," Jake yells.

After that, things get a little hazy. Joe drinks some of the tequila and smokes a little weed before blowing George and then, he somehow ends up between Mike and Hunter in sort of a cuddle pile. He feels completely dwarfed by them, but it's kind of nice to relax between a couple of guys; George is doing the same with Huddy and Javy and he looks pretty damn relaxed too. Eventually, though, Joe ends up back on the sofa with Buster. 

Joe's pretty sure he's good for another round and he's thinking about seeing if maybe Buster is too. Buster's still working on the bottle of Jack and Joe wonders if he's had a little dope after all because his eyes are hooded and he looks sleepy. Bum's leaning back in his chair talking to Jake and Brandon seems to have joined the guys in the beanbag pile. Joe doesn't see him do it, but he's pretty sure Brandon can blow a mean smoke ring. 

Buster's rubbing his thumb across the hickey on Joe's neck when Joe catches a glimpse of someone in the doorway. At first he assumes it's someone coming back from the bathroom, but then he glances over and Timmy's standing there, hands in the pockets of his hoodie as he gazes across the room. 

"Fuck," Buster mutters. He gives Joe a push as he fights his way off the loveseat, the bottle of Jack still in hand. For a minute he stands there looking from Timmy to Bum and back again. Bum's scowling, but he doesn't say anything and after a minute, Buster turns and heads toward the door. 

"Hey," Joe hears him say softly. "I didn't know if...."

"I wasn't going to...." Timmy looks around and then jerks his head toward the hall and, without a glance back, Buster follows him. 

When Joe looks back at Bum, Bum gives him a "what the fuck are you looking at" glare. As Joe looks away, Brandon plops down on the couch next to him.

"Hey," he says, already leaning in for a kiss. "Wanna fool around?"

There's a faint bit of light coming in the windows when Joe wanders into the kitchen. He's feeling a little nauseous and hungry too, but he figures his chance of finding any real food is pretty slim. To his surprise though, there's plenty of food, including several boxes of cereal. He's just pouring himself a bowl of Corm Pops when Brandon wanders in.

"Oh hey, Corn Pops," he says. 

They eat in silence for a while and then Joe looks over at Brandon. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Timmy," Brandon says. "And Bum and Buster, right?"

"Uh...yeah."

"I wish Buster had let me be the one to bring you over here; I coulda warned you." Brandon pauses and shovels a couple spoonfuls of cereal into his mouth. "I don't know what went on in '09, but when I was in Fresno, I heard that Bum and Buster were...they kinda had a thing for each other. But everyone said they never did anything, you know?"

Joe nods.

"Then Buster got called up and I guess Timmy started coming on to him and they sorta fooled around, so when Bum comes up a month later, there's Buster fucking Timmy. Or whatever they do." He sighs. "Bum says Buster always said no when they were in the minors because...I dunno. Bum says it might have been Kristen but I gotta wonder if he was just scared or something."

"This is like a soap opera."

"It really fucking is. I never heard Buster's side of things, but it comes down to...they don't fuck. Like ever."

"I dunno," Joe says. "I kinda thought they were, since it seemed like you 'n' me weren't even there. I mean as far as they were concerned." That, he thinks, is either profound or maybe he's just stoned and talking out his ass.

"Yeah, that's about how it goes. We party, they fuck other guys and do the eyefuck thing. And they're so damn competitive." Brandon pauses and drinks the milk out of his bowl. "They're a couple of fucking morons is what they are."

"And Tim?"

"Good luck figuring Tim out. I been up three full years and part of 2011 and I haven't got a clue. I dunno, I don't think Tim entirely knows what he's doing. But when he shows up, he and Buster always go off somewhere else. I've never seen them do more than exchange..whatchamacallit...meaningful glances."

"Huh." Joe wonders if this conversation will make more sense when he thinks it over later. Like when he's not still fucked up.

"Anyway, that's how it is," Brandon says with a snort. "Even our fucking orgies have unwritten rules. Ball players, I swear to God."

The kitchen has big windows and Joe turns and watches as the sunlight spreads out over the city. "Thanks," he finally says. "For explaining."

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just...." The events of the last twenty-four hours hit him and suddenly he thinks a drunk orgy with his teammates isn't the best thing that's happened to him. "It's...the fucking World Series you know?"

Brandon laughs. "You think this party was big? I mean we gotta win this thing first, but wait'll the night of the parade." Even as he's finishing the sentence, he's getting out of his chair. Coming around behind Joe, he leans down and wraps his arms around Joe. "Me 'n' Brandon n Pablo, we don't want anyone but you in the infield with us, okay? It's gonna be fine."

And maybe he's just saying it to be nice, but Joe doesn't think so. He leans back and lets out a long, deep breath. "Yeah," he says. This team may be weird and there might be some fucked up stuff going on between Buster and Bum and Tim, but that's something to think about during the off season. 

"Yeah," Joe says again. "I think it will."

**Author's Note:**

> I try not to do accents, although I will occasionally change the syntax for the Southern boys. I don't want to try to do that for Gregor or Pablo here, because I really don't want to get it wrong and with them it's not syntax but the accent. The title is from the Brantley Gilbert song "Bottoms Up." I'd like to point out I was going to use a different line--"Pull into the party like, "Y'all wassup" but Nancy talked me into this one. All Her Fault.


End file.
